Thief cut hole in store floor

JENNA-LEY HARRISON
Staff Writer

A Lincolnton man is accused of cutting a hole through the floor of a local convenience store where police said he stole coins and cigarettes Wednesday morning.
Lincolnton Police Detective Mark Sain told the Times-News Thursday afternoon that officers responded around 2 a.m. Wednesday to the Buck Saver on S. Aspen Street in reference to a possible break-in.
Because police couldn’t view the hole in the floor from the store entrance, they determined that the building was secure, Sain said. It wasn’t until officers opened the store that they spotted the hole.
Later that morning, officers arrested Michael Lee Sigmon, 39, of 516 Grier Street, in connection with the incident.
Detectives noted that following the alarm call, a road officer was with Sigmon but was unaware that the business had been broken into. Sain said Sigmon had been spotted walking around in the area.
Sain said the suspect allegedly used the crawl space in the business to reach the floor before cutting a hole in it to make entry into the store’s interior.
In addition to allegedly taking an unknown amount of cigarettes and lose change from the cash register, Sigmon is accused of kicking in the door to an interior storage room, police said.
Detectives were shocked by the unique measures the man allegedly used to access the business.
“Most of the time they (suspects) go in through the roof,” Sain said.
He added that Sigmon has a “pretty extensive” criminal history, which public records on the North Carolina Department of Correction website confirmed.
He has at least four felonies to his name dating back to 1990, all of which took place within county lines. Felony convictions included breaking and entering, larceny after breaking and entering, breaking into vehicles and burning property.
Sigmon served a 21-month prison sentence for misdemeanor breaking and entering, according to NC DOC. Other misdemeanor offenses included receiving stolen goods, DWI and assault on a female.
Sigmon remains behind bars under a $5,000 secured bond and faces one count each of breaking and entering a building and larceny after breaking and entering.